I am Jinshan Youxia

"What exactly did you glean from this?"

“No.” An incredulous expression flashed across Wuxin Ghost’s face. “There’s nothing there. That field mouse has nothing in its heart.”

It shook its head and said, "No, it should be said that it doesn't even have a heart."

Kagura frowned and said, "How is that possible? If it has no heart, then it has no soul either. Is it some kind of puppet? Impossible. There must be something wrong with your abilities."

Spiritual power is the outward manifestation of soul power. How could a puppet without a soul unleash such powerful spiritual power?

They trembled all over just from a distance.

Under such terrifying spiritual power, they would be no different from the monsters that were just instantly killed. In an instant, their bodies and souls would be completely purified. Since they had never even heard of them, let alone seen them, it was entirely possible that their mind-reading ability would be wrong.

A strongman without a soul is simply ridiculous.

"Perhaps." Wuxin Gui himself wasn't entirely sure, after all, they had only been born for a short time. He asked, "Should we still go and help the First Tomb Demon as originally planned?"

"It's probably still toying with those humans."

Kagura covered her face with her fan again to hide her irritation, and said, "Before the field mouse arrives, find an opportunity to steal the Shikon Jewel shard from the head demon, and then go back to find Naraku."

Wuxin Gui glanced at his sister, smiled, and said nothing.

-----------------

Ghost City.

"Mica!"

Coral threw the Flying Bone with all her might, repelling the 'ghosts' surrounding the city gate. She then jumped onto Mica's back and caught the returning Flying Bone.

"Boom!"

The enlarged mica stepped on the back of the leaping monster, using it to fly even higher, quickly soaring into the sky, where no monster could catch up.

Coral turned her head to look at the 'ghosts' filling the city below and sighed deeply.

That's very troublesome.

After leaving the demon slayer's stronghold, she traveled around, inquiring about the whereabouts of the Shikon Jewel fragments. So far, she has only collected one more fragment. After hearing that a large number of demons had appeared in Oni-head City, she did not hesitate to come here to exorcise them.

As a result, not only were there many monsters, but the city itself fell. The demon of the first tomb, which had been buried underground, awakened and used magic to turn everyone in the city into 'demons'.

Note that this is not sorcery, but magic.

The First Tomb Demon is not a mindless monster; it is a demon skilled in magic and illusion.

The people who were turned into monsters had ferocious faces, sharp teeth and claws, long and narrow ears, horns on their heads, lifeless eyes, tall stature, and strong muscles. They had no intelligence and wandered the city instinctively, exhibiting strong aggression towards other humans.

Ordinary people would find it difficult to resist, and there were simply too many of them. This is what caused the city to fall so quickly. The monsters that the samurai had transformed into were even more powerful, and those who were lucky enough not to be affected by the magic could not possibly recapture the city.

If it weren't for the princess of Ghost Head City's lucky escape, which brought out a large amount of treasure and gathered many cultivators, Ghost Head City would have become a forbidden area long ago.

Just as no exorcist would venture alone to the nest of the Bird of Paradise or the territory of the Wolf Clan, it would require the human rulers to unite, gather, and finally send troops to subdue them.

After Coral arrived, she naturally went to see the princess of Ghost Head City and also talked with many exorcists, monks and priests who had come. It was impossible to defeat so many ghosts in a short time, and it would take a lot of time for humans who had been turned into ghosts by magic to dispel the magic on them.

Most importantly, they didn't have time to drag this out any longer. Humans affected by the First Tomb Demon's spell didn't actually become ghosts; they were just fake ghosts. The spell had overdrawn their bodies, and if it dragged on any longer, they would easily die.

Therefore, their goal is to behead the demon of the first tomb in the city. Once the caster dies, the spell's effect will disappear.

Coral has already ventured into the city five times in the past few days to scout out the route. With Mica by her side, she has the highest mobility and is naturally the most suitable person to scout ahead.

"Yummu." She had already seen a young monk struggling with a monster using prayer beads from afar. She called out, and Yunmu descended. Once she reached the right height, she threw out the flying bone.

"Pfft!"

The caterpillar-like monster was cut in half vertically by the Flying Bone.

"Lord Coral." The monk greeted him with his hands clasped together.

Coral nodded and said, "Thank you for your hard work." She then entered the village, which was hidden by the barrier.

It was quite lively, with people with magical powers gathering everywhere during this period. There were monks, Onmyoji, Shinto priests, shrine maidens, and even a Christian monk from abroad, whose name was something like "father".

Coral glanced at the Christian who was going around preaching and enthusiastically asking people to call him "Dad." She still wasn't sure if this religion actually existed.

There are also some mystical, untrained practitioners who possess magical powers but use bizarre methods to cast spells, and whose spells are strange and unusual.

In short, the number of cultivators gathered has exceeded two hundred. It is unclear why the princess of Ghost Head City has summoned so many people. The final plan is to behead the monsters. Even if some people are needed to attract the attention of the ghosts, two hundred people would not be necessary.

While she was thinking, she came to a courtyard.

"Lord Coral."

A princess's maid from Oni-head Castle greeted them and led Coral into the room. They arrived at the reception room and met the princess of Oni-head Castle and her friend, a mysterious woman who called herself Kagura.

"My lord princess."

Coral greeted him politely, then took out a route map she had drawn over the past few days from her pocket. It included how to get to the location of the chief demon in the city, the distribution of demons, and the locations of demons of different strengths.

"Thank you for your hard work." The beautiful princess showed a grateful expression. "Let's prepare to take action tonight."

"So eager?"

Coral blurted out, instinctively sensing something was amiss. The initial plan was to wait a few days before taking action, but thinking that the sooner they acted, the higher the chances of the humans who had become ghosts surviving, she bowed again and said, "I'm sorry, I was rude."

Chapter 181 Trap

Inside a dark room in the Castle of Abyss.

"Kagura and Goshinki, they have no chance of succeeding."

The little girl in the white kimono spoke expressionlessly, her tone devoid of any emotion. The mirror she held reflected Kagura and the 'Princess of Oni-head Castle' leading a large number of cultivators to Oni-head Castle.

"Humph~"

Naraku chuckled. He never thought that his two clones could successfully kill Zhang Chengyi. How could a monster many times stronger than Kikyo be killed so easily?

Invincible.

He was acutely aware that he could never defeat Zhang Chengyi, or rather, no one could defeat Zhang Chengyi, not just in terms of strength, but also in terms of incomprehensible abilities—creating countless identical things out of thin air, which was simply a miracle.

But it doesn't matter.

He has never had the idea of ​​becoming the strongest, whether in the past or present. Everyone has weaknesses, even him, or Zhang Chengyi.

As a half-demon whom he despises, his only goal is to collect the Shikon Jewel to transform himself into a complete demon.

It's almost finished now...

Naraku played with a small piece of the Shikon Jewel in his hand, and it seemed that he could already see himself transformed into a complete demon in his eyes, but why did that version of himself look somewhat confused?

He grasped the Shikon Jewel, then opened his hand; the jewel had already merged into his body. He said calmly, "Kanna, take the Seven Warriors and retrieve the jewels from Kagome and Inuyasha."

"Neither Kikyo nor Zhang Chengyi will have time to interfere right now."

With so many fragments of the Shikon Jewel, even if they weren't complete, one could still make a wish to become a youkai using magic.

"Yes." Kagami finished speaking in a completely emotionless tone, and her body quietly disappeared into the darkness.

【Kikyo, what are you thinking?】

In the deserted, dark room, Naraku's face showed a rare expression of confusion. He hadn't actually collected many Shikon Jewel shards. After all, the time was too short, and he couldn't see the Shikon Jewel inside the bodies of demons, so his collection progress was slow. Kikyo had left a Shikon Jewel shard after seeing him a few days ago.

If we include the fragments Kagome has, the collection should be almost complete.

However, after seeing Zhang Chengyi spit out a large number of Shikon Jewel fragments, Saimaru changed his plans.

At this crucial moment when he's about to become a complete yokai, he should be happy, but instead, he feels no excitement. A strange emotion is brewing in his mind, and inexplicably, he's very concerned about Kikyo's thoughts. What is this...?

why?

-----------------

Ghost Head City, City Lord's Mansion, Nightfall.

"That's it? That's it? That's it?"

Looking at the 'ghosts' wandering all over the courtyard, Zhang Chengyi gave a three-part expression of disappointment.

He now seriously suspects that either Naraku is an idiot, or that guy has other plans, and that this place is simply a waste of his time.

When they arrived, the city gates were wide open, and there were wandering ghosts everywhere. They looked quite intimidating, but they were all fake ghosts. They didn't know any magic or sorcery, nor did they have the superhuman strength or illusions of ghosts. They were just a little stronger than ordinary people. And the strangest thing was that these fake ghosts didn't attack them at all.

They walked to the city lord's mansion as if on a picnic, but the mastermind behind it all, Big Head Ghost, did not appear.

Instead of a direct confrontation, it felt like a purely disgusting trap.

“Someone’s coming.” Jiro’s ears twitched. He emphasized, “A lot of people. They’re fighting the fake ghosts outside that are under a spell.”

Maitreya grasped the prayer beads sealing the wind cave and said with a solemn expression, "The evil energy in the city is growing stronger. The demon of the First Tomb has returned."

"Whoosh!"

An arrow shot down from above.

Erlang swiftly grabbed the arrow shaft, but the magic power attached to the arrow burned his flesh, making a sizzling sound. He cried out in pain and threw the arrow aside.

"Is it a priestess?" Miroku looked up and saw an old woman dressed in a red and white priestess outfit standing on a high place, continuing to draw her bow and shoot arrows.

"squeak!"

The giant boomerang squeezed the air with a sharp sound as it spun closer to Jiro's head.

Flying bone?

Zhang Chengyi jumped off Erlang and looked up in mid-air. Sure enough, Coral was riding on Yunmu and quickly approaching.

With a cold face, the young girl leaped forward to catch the flying bone, and as she threw it again, the curved blade on her wrist popped out, using the force of the fall to viciously slash at Erlang's neck.

Erlang should not be afraid of melee combat, but his opponents are not only Coral, but also Mica, the old priestess who shoots arrows from the shadows, and several monks and priests who are eyeing him covetously. With extreme agility, he rolled on the spot, then supported his body with one hand and kicked Mica away. Enduring the pain of the Demon-Slaying Arrow piercing his arm, he slapped Firakotsu away.

Zhang Chengyi's extraordinary intelligence told him that he could summon his Pokémon, so he stretched out his paw and said with a determined look, "Kuiko."

"Lord Rat God, they are under an illusion."

Cui Zi said in a serious voice, "Spiritual power is not omnipotent. It can deal with monsters, evil energy, and miasma with a single touch, but it is not very useful against humans, especially human cultivators. It requires close contact to release some restrictive or lethal spells."

To undo a spell that has been cast on someone, one must prepare in advance and be close to them.

The bounce spell is simple; even if it bounces back at a group of controlled humans, it won't harm the mastermind behind it.

Some barriers are indeed powerful, but they need to be set up in advance. Moreover, no matter how strong her spiritual power is, it is ultimately released within Zhang Chengyi's body, not used by him personally. Furthermore, her soul is in a damaged state, which makes it too inconvenient for combat.

Most importantly, it's too dangerous for ordinary field mice to get involved in close combat.